Into the Storm
by Accretion
Summary: What if Max decided to head back into the storm instead of running away?


"I swear… but that nightmare was so real… was so horrible."

Max finished standing up in the pouring rain of the storm. She looked around and saw the missing top of the lighthouse. She stepped forward, staring right at the tornado that was bearing down on the town. It was that moment she made her decision, without consulting Chloe she turned and started running back down the hill toward the beach.

"MAX!" Chloe yelled and gave chase. She caught up with the hipster brunette fairly quickly given how Max was still out of it from the nightmare. Chloe grabbed her friend and stopped her.

"What are you doing?"

A shake of the head greeted Chloe. "I'm sorry Chloe, I figured it out in the nightmare. I may have caused this, but I know what choices are coming. It's obvious."

Tears were streaming down Max's face as she thought about the horrible choice ahead of her, but they were easily drowned out by the falling rain.

Chloe pursed her lips. "You would have to let me die, wouldn't you?" She pulled out the butterfly photo and looked at it.

"Or we stay alive, stay safe and watch everybody else we know and love die." Max finished the thought.

Chloe remained quiet for a minute. Max started walking again and Chloe went with.

"So Super Max, what's the plan? I mean, you know I'm with you…"

"To the end," Max finished Chloe's thought for her.

Chloe nodded but remained silent.

"We go back to your truck and try to make it back to the Two Whales. Your mom, Warren, Frank, and some others are there. Maybe David has made it by now too."

Chloe rolled her eyes at that.

"Come on Chloe, he saved me from Jefferson. You don't want him to die without you ever getting the chance to thank him for that."

Chloe was pouting now. "But I want to hate him Max." She sighed. "You're right though. He may be a step-douche, but he's my step-douche!"

Max couldn't help but grin at that thought and how disappointed David would be at her still calling him that. "I know you're scared Chloe, but I can't lose them, and I can't lose you, I love you."

Chloe stood stunned at Max's announcement. The badass punk melted away and Chloe could only respond, "And I love you Max."

They stared into each other's eyes for a moment, but Max turned and started running back down the hill. There would be time enough when they got to the Two Whales.

Once in Chloe's truck they sped down the road the best they could with a raging tornado in their path. The girls ended up dodging several fallen trees, power poles, and flying cars in the process, but they made it to down town Arcadia Bay. Getting out of the truck, Max grabbed Chloe's hand and led her through the town. Max still had her powers so at worst case she could ensure they made it safely.

It took several minutes to make it to the Two Whales, though for Chloe it seemed like less than a minute. Max wouldn't admit to how many times she had to rewind, but with all the close calls and Max's profusely bleeding nose, she knew she was saved by her friend.

Pushing into the diner they heard several shocked gasps of their names.

"Chloe!"

"Max!"

Joyce ran out to hug Chloe, leaving Warren to help tend to the wounded. Max looked up to see that it was a surprised Dana calling her name. A frown crossed Max's face. She obviously liked Dana, but there were two people she would have rather heard from instead. Kate, who should be safe in the hospital, and Victoria, who she knew was dead. Rachel Amber, Nathan, Victoria, all dead because of the now-dead Mark Jefferson. Max clenched up. Fuck the storm, Jefferson in general was worse.

Joyce came over to hug Max as well. Joyce was ranting and raving about something, perhaps how Max brought Chloe back with her this time, she wasn't really sure as she wasn't really paying attention. When Joyce broke the hug Max smiled awkwardly and walked over to Chloe, grabbing the punk's hand.

Chloe smiled back at Max, and the two girls found a booth that wasn't totally damaged yet to sit in, together. Max looked around as they sat, Chloe looking all protective of Max as they held hands. Warren had caught Max's eye and looked disappointed, but seemed to understand. Joyce had returned to David. David looked relieved and confused seeing Chloe, and even more confused by how Chloe and Max were acting. Joyce on the other hand looked right at the girls, shook her head and turned away smirking.

The rumbling of the wind was getting louder and louder. From the little cracks in the boarded up window they could see through, buildings across the street were getting fully ripped up by the storm now. The moment was near and they both knew it. That's when Max let go of Chloe's hand.

Chloe turned to Max looking confused and disappointed but she didn't need to for long. Max's hands reached up for Chloe's head and Max pulled her best friend, her soulmate close and kissed her. It was Max's first true kiss, and she knew it would be her last so she decided to make it count. Chloe was taken by surprise, but pleasantly so as each girl's tongue explored the other's mouth. Max had never believed in a deity, or heaven, but in that moment she felt she understood what it was supposed to be like.

There was another loud rumble and it all ended.

* * *

Max Caulfield looked around and found herself in the Two Whales diner. Alone.

She sighed a very angry sigh. _This bullshit again? If I'm supposed to be dead just let me be dead._ She looked around and quickly realized that was wasn't alone. Well, she was, but not really.

Sitting in the same booth as the nightmare was her once more. Max made her way over to the twisted version of herself that was sitting down in the same booth and just slid in across from her.

"Don't look so happy to see me Max," she heard in her own voice coming from her own face staring back at her.

"I thought we were done in the nightmare."

"You should have been," the bitchy doppelganger responded to her. "But then you had to go do something unexpected."

"So you were counting on me to let Chloe die to prevent the storm."

A shrug from the self sitting across from her. "Or let the town die and you and Chloe could live your lives together never truly escaping what you had done."

Max smiled at the thought of her and Chloe together forever.

"But no, you had to go and spend your last moments with the people in the town, never realizing that you would fuck everything up, just like you did this last week in general."

She rolled her eyes. "And just how did I fuck everything up?"

Her twisted reflection smirked at her. "If Chloe died there would be no storm. But like you, Chloe just died in the storm. Since she died there can't be a storm, but it was the storm that killed her. Am I getting through that thick skull of yours?"

Max nodded. "A paradox."

"I guess you got something out of all those books that Warren gave you."

She was getting tired of being put down by herself. Sure it was true that Max was by far the person who was hardest on herself, but that was always in the metaphorical sense. She didn't need something with her face, her voice, and her mannerisms actually telling it to her.

"So I fucked up whatever plans, whatever lesson you were supposed to teach me. What now?"

The doppelganger smiled. "Simple. You're going to go back to the beginning of the week, and you're allowed to make one change."

Max looked confused, like it was all too good to be true. She didn't need rewind powers to have a headache now.

"So you get to make one change that affects Arcadia Bay and the lives of those you care about. And don't go wishing for something for the world over. As much as it'd be nice to wish Hitler out of existence, he doesn't really have that major of an impact on Arcadia Bay. Think small, think the people around you, those you care about."

Max pursed her lips at that. "So I get to make one change to the world around my life? Any change and I'm all good."

The other Max cackled at this. "Oh come on Max, you of all people should know."

"I should know what?"

"This action will have consequences."

"I see."

Another nod from the doppelganger. "So Max, make your choice. What one change can you make that could prevent the storm and finally allow everyone to live?"

Max sat there silently thinking for several minutes. Her breathing was slow and her eyes were closed—which was good since she could no longer see her twin mocking her taking so long. She finally opened her eyes and looked.

"Alright Max, what have you decided."

"You said anything, right?"

A nod.

"Well then, it's simple. I wish…"

* * *

 **I haven't decided if this is a oneshot, or if this is going to become part of a bigger series (something to run opposite Moving Foward) but along the everyone lives track instead of everyone/Chloe dies track. Leave reviews with thoughts. Also follow my story tumblr. lismovingforward . tumblr . com  
**


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